The reputation of Oliviero Toscani, famous photographer of the controversial campaigns of Benetton, is well established. His passion for Appaloosa horses, which he was the first to import from the United States in 1980, is no secret, but his vocation as a winemaker is less well known.
Its 160-hectare estate, the "Podere Campigallo", which he has built year after year since for 40 years, is located in the heart of Tuscany in the valley below the picturesque and authentic village of Casale Marittimo. Toscani is a casual man, jovial, happy to share his passions and to discover his corner of paradise distributed between horses, olive trees and vines of Cabernet Franc, Syrah and Petit Verdot, planted like an amphitheater at 400 meters above sea level, at the top of the hills to enjoy the cooler temperatures and rocky, granitic soils, loaded with fiery red-colored minerals. These special and unique conditions give the Syrah grape an intensely scented nose, with flavours of juicy black fruits and cracked black pepper and velvety tannins.
Olivero Toscani is not a native of Tuscany, and his love for the countryside came early when, during the last war, his family took him to the countryside outside Milan where he lived, to escape the bombings. When he is not in a studio in Paris, New York or Milan, it is in Campigallo, far from the socialities and artifices of modern life where he relaxes and finds his inspiration. The idea of planting vines in this valley has been germinating since the 1970s. At that time, he worked in California, where new vineyards were planted along the coast. Despite being located a few kilometres from the famous vineyards of Bolgheri, nobody had planted vineyards in Casale Marittimo. It was his friend Angelo Gaja who put his foot in the stirrup and accompanied him in his project. Since 2001, at the suggestion of the legendary winemaker Angelo Gaja, the estate produces first-class Syrah.
Since 2014, the son of Oliviero, Rocco, born in the property, is fully dedicated to the field and works with his team to develop the potential of Syrah.